And to start off a new week, we have another 2012 release (by Australian standards, at least, like the last two movies I've reviewed) that I ventured out to see (still not Sherlock Holmes: A Game Of Shadows, and there will probably be a couple more films before that). This time around, I saw the latest Martin Scorsese picture, Hugo.
Hugo is based on the illustrated novel The Invention Of Hugo Cabret, written by Brian Selznick.
Hugo (Ava Butterfield) lives at a railway station in 1930's Paris after the death of his father (Jude Law), maintaining the clocks in secret while avoiding the station inspector, Gustav (Sacha Baron Cohen). Hugo strives to complete an automaton that he and his father were working on just before his father's death. This project involves him stealing parts from a local toy booth owner, Papa Georges (Ben Kingsley), who is apprehensive and cold towards the boy. His goddaughter, Isabelle (Chloe Grace Moretz), takes an interest in Hugo and together, the two set out to complete the automaton and uncover the secrets within.
Goodfellas. Taxi Driver. Gangs Of New York. Mean Streets. Casino. All works by Scorsese, all about violent people and none of them are definitely for the eyes of youngsters. Even his films like The Age Of Innocence and Kundun aren't really something he had in mind for the little ones. So, it's a huge surprise to see a film like this considering all that's come before. But I can understand wanting a change of scenery. I mean, he's got a daughter who I think is about 12 years old and it's not like she can sit down and watch any of his current filmography.
When I first saw the trailer, I have to admit I wasn't overly impressed. I kind of expected it to be a fantastical, whimsical and magical adventure, not unlike Harry Potter. I mean, it didn't look bad, but it didn't stand out. Having seen it now, I am relieved that the magic comes more from the heart than it does from spells and sorcerers.
Scorsese has assembled an impressive cast and a few of the actors and actresses I believe he's working with for the first time, too.
Though, oddly enough, it is the films lead that I find the most polarising. On the one hand, when he needs to emote, the kid can emote. His tears are sincere and when his face fills with wonder, it is such a joy to behold. But at the same time, the character can come off as unresponsive and rude (despite being told later that he has “good manners... for a thief”) as he doesn't say please when asking for things, especially whenever he asks for his notebook back and he doesn't respond immediately. And no, I will not accept “well, the death of his father at such a young age made sure he didn't develop the proper social skills” because whenever we see the flashbacks with his father, he seems a lot more well-adjusted. And yeah, the effects of death manifest in all different forms but it's not like he was raised by wolves when he died, he did have a life before the tragedy. If his father had died when he was an infant, this might make more sense. He does improve in the third act, but for the first two, you kind of understand why Ben Kingsley's character wants nothing to do with the boy.
Speaking of Ben Kingsley, his character is probably my favourite of the whole movie. Throughout the first two acts, he plays the role of a bitter, aged man without making him unsympathetic or hamming it up by bellowing for no reason. And by the third, when you understand his past better, it just makes him that much more a three dimensional character. And (spoiler alert!) knowing that the character is actually someone from real life, it makes the journey (character development-wise and literal) that much more heartwarming. It's not my favourite role of his (that's still his Dr. Watson in Without A Clue, equally tied with Itzhak Stern, and for the record, I have yet to see Gandhi or House Of Sand And Fog and a whole bunch of others).
If Hugo is aloof and serious, Isabelle is his antithesis. Well, she is serious but in the sense that she's mature for her age, not like Hugo who seems to be single minded. Chloe Moretz is delightful as the inquisitive, quick-witted adventure-seeking girl with a vibrant look on life. I actually think she makes a better protagonist than Hugo, which is kind of sad considering it's Hugo's movie.
Also turning in a great performance is Sacha Baron Cohen as the train station inspector. The man is able to come up with new and interesting performances with every project he undertakes and this is no exception. Despite being the closest thing this movie has to an antagonist (another factor I like about the movie, the lack of a conventional villain. I mean, sure, I love villains but if the film doesn't need one, it can make for more interesting viewing sometimes), he is still sympathetic with his own subplot about attracting the attention of a sweet and pretty flower girl (played by Emily Mortimer, who is ever so adorable in this movie. Not that she isn't in others, but especially here) and getting too tongue tied to strike up a conversation with her, not helped by his leg injury from the First World War. While his own backstory is only ever glossed over, it hints at a life not entirely unlike Hugo's and he also gets some of the funniest lines of the movie, like the running gag involving his conversations with another man expecting a baby with his wife, and is unsure if he is the father.
Much like The Muppets was a love letter from a lifelong fan to the entire franchise, so too is this a love letter to... well, movies themselves. The film goes into great detail about the first films ever made and describes how much of an influence they came to be. Hugo and his father loved the movies, and it is this that forms part of the drive for Hugo to complete his father's work. This film is a vessel in which Martin Scorsese is basically saying “For every thing you've allowed me to do and achieve in my career, this is my thank you.” He goes back to the beginning and it's not just the third act and all its revelations, the entire film holds homages to the silent era. A lot of the film relies on the expressions of its actors and scenes lacking dialogue to carry the movie and for the most part, they work. Heck, even the promotional poster of Hugo hanging from a clock is an homage to a film called Safety Last!, starring Harold Lloyd.
It may not be my favourite of Scorsese's filmography, but it is incredibly heartfelt. I give Hugo a 3.5/5.
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